DESCRIPTION

Interest in Ruby has exploded. Developers discovering this elegant, dynamic language quickly learn that Ruby is a powerful alternative to traditional static languages like Java or C++. It runs in most operating environments and can handle virtually any programming task you throw at it. Ruby code is clean and elegant. Best of all, Ruby is dynamic, which means that it's designed to react at runtime to changes in an application's environment or requirements.

The Well-Grounded Rubyist takes you from interested novice to proficient practitioner. It's a beautifully written tutorial that begins with the basic steps to get your first Ruby program up and running and goes on to explore sophisticated topics like callable objects, reflection, and threading The book concentrates on the language, preparing you for any way you may choose to use Ruby. Whether the topic is simple or tough, the book's easy-to-follow examples and explanations give you immediate confidence as you build your Ruby programming skills.

The Well-Grounded Rubyist is a thoroughly revised and updated edition of the best-selling Ruby for Rails. In this new book, expert author David A. Black moves beyond Rails and presents a broader view of Ruby. It covers Ruby 1.9, and keeps the same sharp focus and clear writing that made Ruby for Rails stand out.

It's no wonder one reader commented: "The technical depth is just right to not distract beginners, yet detailed enough for more advanced readers."

WHAT'S INSIDE

Crystal clear examples and explanations of core Ruby topics

Starts at the very beginning and guides you to confident proficiency

Updated for Ruby 1.9

Prepares you to use Ruby anywhere—not just with Rails

About the Author

David A. Black has been programming in Ruby since 2000. He is the owner and director of the consultancy Ruby Power and Light, LLC, and a director of Ruby Central, Inc. David is a Ruby library contributor, and an expert practitioner and trainer in the Ruby language and the Ruby on Rails development framework.

WHAT REVIEWERS ARE SAYING

“What would appear to be the most complex topic of the book is in fact surprisingly easy to assimilate, and one realizes that the efforts of the author to gradually lead us to a sufficient knowledge of Ruby in order to tackle without pain the most difficult subjects, bears its fruit.”
—Eric Grimois, Developpez.com

“Personally, I think The Well-Grounded Rubyist excels at explaining the fundamentals which can be a nightmare to explain to new programmers and programmers coming from a different language. It can be especially difficult to explain to me as someone who is carrying the baggage of a statically typed language like C#. In the end, David does an excellent job getting me up to speed on the basics of Ruby and opening my eyes to the coolness of a dynamic language...I highly recommend it.”
—David Hayden, Microsoft MVP

“What I really like about this approach is that it exposes the reader to concepts needed for some quite advanced Ruby coding right away, and in a very light-hearted and 'natural' manner. Well done!”
—Michael Kohl

“...a great way to learn just how Ruby crams so much expressiveness into such a simple clean framework... Well done to David A. Black and Manning for producing a book that fills those gaps in many Rubyists' understanding of the language while at the same time delivering an absorbing readable book that would sit proudly on any Ruby programmer's bookshelf.”
—Declan McGrath